The Debut

"The Debut utilizes a solid 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer. Few defects or grain exist on the screen, which contributes to an excellent viewing experience. The film's low budget is not apparent with the bright and clear colors. This release features a 2.0 channel Dolby Surround track that presents the considerable dialogue in understandable fashion. The overall transfer is not extremely powerful and remains fairly centralized, but it still does an impressive job. This special edition contains a surprising collection of worthwhile extra features. Writer/director Gene Cajayon and co-writer John Manal Castro remain very down-to-earth in the feature-length commentary. Both speakers offer insights into the Filipino culture and describe the difficulties involved in shooting. Also noteworthy are six deleted scenes, which include an alternate opening and some good personal moments. Several fine documentaries enhance our understanding of this film, which stands as basically the first picture to deal with the Filipino-American experience. ""The Making of The Debut"" runs for 20 minutes and contains impressive conversations with co-writers Cajayon and Castro. ""The Little Film That Could: Touring the Country"" showcases their nationwide journey to get the film viewed. This disc also contains two short films that showcase the story's origins and the writers' early work. 1992's Debut provides the initial foundation that Cajayon used to sell the feature film, and Castro's Diary of a Gangsta Sucka depicts the family life and background of a wannabe Filipino gangster. ""The Mercado Files"" provides three featurettes that each cover a specific aspect of the film. The remaining supplements include advertisements, a gag reel, DVD-ROM features, and several previews."